


Close Encounters

by Operator Yaku (TheHonkmaster)



Series: Infestation Series [10]
Category: Warframe
Genre: Body Horror, Other, brief descriptions of body horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-20 16:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13722006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheHonkmaster/pseuds/Operator%20Yaku





	Close Encounters

Yaku’ thought that maybe – just maybe – if they brought Huon back to their Orbiter one day, Naki would leave them alone.

They could not have been more wrong.

Huon wasn’t sure what woke him or why. He sat up slowly and listened for any disturbance outside of the room, hearing nothing but the muffled sounds of the foundry and the soft snuffling from the Helminth curled up in front of the door. Yaku’ slept soundly next to him; their photic channels brightened and dimmed with their breathing and heartbeat, proving their status as a living creature despite the alarmingly slow rate of each cycle. 

A quiet noise caught at the edge of his hearing. Carefully, so as not to wake Yaku’, Huon slid out of bed and crept towards the door. The Helminth lifted her head and chirped questioningly at him and he nodded towards the bed, giving a silent command for the beast to move. When the Helminth remained where she was he nudged her with a toe. “Thani,” he said sternly, frowning at her.

The Helminth gave a snort and got up. She trotted to the side of the bed where Yaku’ laid and curled up within reach of them, clacking her mandibles at the Meridian. Huon nodded at Thani and waved the door open.

Outside of the bedroom, the various sounds of the ship became more apparent. The foundry crackled and if Huon listened hard enough he could hear the hum of the engine and feel the faint vibrations running through the floor and into his feet. As he stood in front of the bedroom door and allowed himself to wake up, the quiet noise caught his attention again.

It sounded just like footsteps. 

Someone or something was on the Orbiter that wasn’t supposed to be. Huon dropped into a crouch and backed against the wall; the dimmed lights were simultaneously an advantage and not and Huon hoped he would be able to see whatever was on the ship before it saw him. 

He edged forward, moving up the ramp towards the foundry. As he cleared the incline a dark shape appeared at the edge of his vision and he twisted, ready to tackle the intruder, only to discover it was merely Yaku’’s Equinox hooked up to the arsenal. The idling Warframe made no noise, only gave off a soft glow reminiscent of its Operator’s photic channels, and Huon took a step closer and straightened up.

The Equinox bore Red Veil colors – the same colors that painted the Transference suit Yaku’ wore – and the energy channels glowed burnt orange. Huon reached out to touch its arm, half expecting it to come alive and break his wrist for daring to come so close to the machine. When its joints remained locked, he laid his hand on the red and grey arm and felt along the smooth, flexible carapace. 

“Huh,” he murmured, moving in closer. He found that he was actually taller than the frame, a fact that elicited a chuckle from him as he knew that it would bother Yaku’ to no end. Only their Infested Valkyr Prime, Tsania’dacha, was taller than him, but she stood hunched over most of the time. He continued examining the Equinox, noting the odd shape of its torso and the flowing fabric-like additions that gave it the appearance of sleeves. As he ran his fingers across the head and what was supposed to be the face, the quiet noise sounded again.

Huon turned around. Leaning against the foundry was Yaku’, staring at him with eyes the color of liquid bronze. “You’re not supposed to touch that,” they said flatly.

“I… thought you were asleep,” he murmured, feeling as though they were pinning him in place with their gaze like a Terran butterfly to a corkboard. “How did you get dressed so quickly?”

Yaku’’s face split into a grin far too wide to be natural. “Ohh, he thinks I’m them. How sweet. Yes, yes, he thinks that I snuck past him when we went to bed… He’s so naive, so unaware. But that isn’t the case, is it? Oh, no.  _Never_  the case.”

Huon tried to take a step back. His muscles refused. He watched Yaku’ with the posture of something that knows it’s being hunted, his body tense and a strange sense of unease cascading over him. No – not unease.  _Fear._ His subconscious told him that the creature in front of him wasn’t Yaku’, not matter how much they looked like the Tenno. “Is this your Infestation again?”

The not-Yaku’ laughed and pushed away from the foundry. “Infestation, Transference, Void madness, it’s all the same in the end. Death, death, and more death. The endless nothingness, yawning open in front of you like a hungry maw waiting to be nourished. They drank it, you know. The Kuva. They want eternal life, only they don’t realize that they already have it. Why can’t they just give up their body and meld with their Warframe? How cowardly.”

The Meridian captain’s mind raced. Yaku’ told him they were working on a special set of handcuffs that would cut off any connection they had to the Infested hive mind; they’d shown him a prototype when he first boarded, only to toss it aside to… to… someplace he couldn’t recall. He wracked his brain, desperately trying to remember where the prototype had fallen before the not-Yaku’ went feral in front of him.

“Don’t try anything!” the not-Yaku’ giggled, their grin stretching wider. “It won’t do anything, not to me. Just embrace the Void. Let it wash over you, let it cradle you in its depths, let your thoughts drift away and no longer fear anything.” They stalked closer and laughed again; this time the sound was somehow  _off,_ no matter how much it sounded like Yaku’ _._ It sent a chill down Huon’s spine and he shivered.

“Your eyes don’t usually change like this,” he said, finally taking a step back.

“Oh! They don’t, do they? Well, now that’s an issue. What are they usually, pale gold?” the not-Yaku’ asked. It blinked and both eyes shifted. 

“There. That’s better, isn’t it? Oh! And they usually have a blue glow, don’t they?” Another blink and cyan light flickered behind their pupils. “Is that right? Now, where were we? Oh! I remember. The Void. Have you heard its song, Grineer? Have you listened to it calling you? Surely you can feel its pull when you’re around them.”

Huon took another step back; not-Yaku’ was within arm’s reach of him and every inch of him was screaming for him to run, but he could barely lift a finger. Not-Yaku’’s gaze still pinned him despite the change in eye color, and if anything, the change only made it worse. He could still sense that bronze stare underneath the gold and cyan as if it hid behind a one-way mirror.

“They’re hypnotic, aren’t they?” not-Yaku’ whispered. Huon wasn’t sure if they were referencing their eyes or something else. Not-Yaku’ continued. “The photic channels running along their body are beautiful – a product of the Infestation we share, but somehow refined instead of mottled blotches of bioluminescence. I know you’re entranced by them; I can feel it every time you’re around them. You can’t help but stare. Even when they’re asleep,  _especially_ when they’re asleep, you count the breaths and watch their heartlines pulse. Their heart beats so slowly, doesn’t it? And you thought they were dying. Oh, the irony of it all. You’re so afraid they’re deteriorating, and yet… and yet.”

“What are you talking about?” Huon asked, his voice hoarse. “Why do you keep saying “them”? Who are you?”

“I am Naki,” it said, baring its teeth in a mock grin. “I am a reflection of your partner through and through and they cannot hide  _anything_  from me. I can see how your lives intertwine and I know when and how they disconnect. It’s so beautifully bittersweet. Every single interaction, every lost moment and unspoken word, every single action that leads up to your separation… Your deaths are going to be  _wonderful,”_ it hissed, lunging at him with suddenly too-sharp teeth.

Huon stumbled away from Naki. He hurriedly backed down the ramp towards the bedroom and Naki stopped advancing towards him, opting to wait at the top of the ramp with an unhinged grin on its face. Behind him the bedroom door slid open and the  _tak-tak-tak_ of Thani’s foot signaled her trotting out to Huon. 

“…Huon? Why are you up?” The voice, softened by sleep, clearly belonged to Yaku’. Thani clacked her mandibles at Huon and butted her head against his leg, completely disregarding the monster waiting at the top of the ramp.

Huon flashed a glance over his shoulder to see his partner rubbing their eye with the heel of their hand. When he looked back, Naki was gone. “Wh… What… the fuck?” he murmured, turning to glance at Yaku’ again.

The Tenno shuffled up behind him and rested their forehead against his back. They wrapped their arms around him and pulled him close, squishing their cheek against him. “Mrh. Nightmares again?” they asked.

Huon stared at the space where Naki stood; he realized that neither Yaku’ nor Thani had seen it and knew nothing of the encounter. “…Yes, you could say that,” he answered, not taking his eyes off the empty ramp.

“Mm. Come back to bed, I’m cold and you’re not.” Against his back he could feel their heart beat slow and weak and worry struck him again. Naki told him about their heart, mentioned it specifically when it spoke about their deaths. He turned in their embrace and hefted them into his arms, carrying them back into the bedroom.

“You aren’t deteriorating, right?” he asked as he laid down with them, curling around their smaller form.

“Tenno don’t deteriorate,” they murmured. Yaku’ snuggled up to Huon, pressing their full body against his as they started to fall back asleep. “You’re nice and warm. Don’t get up again. Goodnight.”

“…Goodnight, Yaku’.”


End file.
